Uber?

[External Poster]

This posting is from: Veronica Lynn Sevier
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I was curious if anyone has ever used Uber, especially in Las Vegas? I
was wondering if it is a good system for us girls to get around town in
Las Vegas or not. Compared to Taxi's.

Veronica


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(This posting was entered by Veronica Lynn Sevier, an external user of MyDLV.)

[External Poster]

This posting is from: Delaney
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Veronica,

I've used it quite a few times, particularly in NYC and Philadelphia,
have had good luck, and zero "trans" issues. I have not used it in Las
Vegas.

Delaney


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(This posting was entered by Delaney, an external user of MyDLV.)

[steph1957]

I have heard good things about Uber in Vegas as far as prices go in comparison to taxis. The majority of people in Vegas treat Transgender people with dignity and respect and am certain Uber drivers are as well. Plus they have codes of conduct set by Uber that must be adhered to.
I myself still prefer to have a vehicle while in town. The last time I was in Vegas I booked a Dodge Challenger for $165 for 5 days. This trip I elected to go with a compact which I have booked for $110 for 4 days. That is the cost of 4 taxi rides or less. I like to go to a couple of the lgbt friendly clubs while in town along with a trip downtown. I know it is hard finding reasonable rates for car rental and at times a pain getting in and out of parking garages, but I like the freedom a car provides and a certain safety factor as well.

[annie]

Uber was not around in Las Vegas during DLV last year, but we had a few people use it during Pinkfest last October. I remember hearing only good reports and certainly no TG-related issues.

> Plus they have codes of conduct set by Uber that must be adhered to.

A FOAF of mine drives for Uber. I was able to get a copy of their Partner Agreement, and I just searched it for any non-discrimination, "love all serve all" clauses and the like using the usual suspect keywords. Such verbiage is surprisingly absent, at least in the copy I was given.

> I myself still prefer to have a vehicle while in town.

For the first several years I rented a car. (From 1998 until the early 2000s we had the Annie Van.)

I gave that up after one almost-incident while picking up a vanload of our people at the Sahara, which could have been tragic if the timing were a few seconds off! Also, I enjoy the ability to have a few (or more than a few) adult beverages without risking a DUI or leaving the car in place and retrieving it the next morning. So for many years I did not and bummed rides or took a taxi or the Monorail.

Then last year for some reason I just said "what the {heck}" and rented a car. It stayed in the lot for two days I know of and I really did not use it that much. It did come in handy for such places as The Center, FISM, and the Pinball Hall Of Fame but if I do some mental math it was more expensive than a taxi would have been for things like that.

[Michelle V]

Uber driver over in Michigan was going on a shooting spree between fares this last weekend.

External Poster wrote :
> This posting is from: Delaney
> ----------
>
> Veronica,
>
> I've used it quite a few times, particularly in NYC and Philadelphia,
> have had good luck, and zero "trans" issues. I have not used it
> in Las
> Vegas.
>
> Delaney
>
>
> ----------
> (This posting was entered by Delaney, an external user of MyDLV.)

[External Poster]

This posting is from: Vera Delmar
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Then, there is this.....UBER DRIVER ALLEGEDLY KILLS SIX PEOPLE IN
BETWEEN CUSTOMERS

Jason B. Dalton, 45, has been arrested after allegedly shooting and
killing six people and wounding two more. These are the victims of the
Kalamazoo shootings. [Kelly Chen, HuffPost]


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(This posting was entered by Vera Delmar, an external user of MyDLV.)

[External Poster]

This posting is from: Katie Wilson
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I am not all that familiar with Uber and their setup but if I were make
a calculated guess I would say that they have little or no rules to be
guided by!

Also they do not have to answer to a boss who can fire them for
indiscretions or tardiness here and there because they are independently
run and completely on their own in their own vehicle, which likely does
not get regular maintenance or most importantly a regular cleaning and
sanitation inside.

If I were getting a ride in a rough city like Vegas I would pay the
extra and I would feel a lot safer in a legitimate cab company
vehicle.If a cab breaks down which happened to me once then there will
be another one along almost instantly and the ride was free. Uber, Maybe
not so.

Just My thoughts. Not a rule of thumb to live by.

Katie.


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(This posting was entered by Katie Wilson, an external user of MyDLV.)

[genevieve]

oops, i double posted somehow, read below for my final draft

[genevieve]

I feel like I should interject here as there seems to be a lot of speculations here.
There also seems to be some hysteria and misinformation.

I live in Las Vegas and my roommate(who is also trans) and I use Uber and Lyft all the time.
We actually prefer Lyft over Uber.
Lyft is another ride share company just like Uber.

Both services cost about half what a taxi costs.

We have had nothing but good experiences.

Most drivers arrive primptly within 5-10 minutes and they arrive in clean cars, many of which offer water and multiple cords for charging your devices (iphones, ipads, androids etc...)

as to the idea that there are "no rules" governing them...
yes, every driver is technically an independent contractor that is using the ride share service as a tool to match them up with riders.

but there IS a set of standards they must follow. They have to have a certain kind of car, i don't know the specifics, but i know it has to be 4 door and must be able to accomade at least 3 passengers.
The drivers get background checked. They must have valid driver's licenses and clean records.

They also have a rating system. When you complete a ride, you are prompted to rate your driver from 1-5 stars. When you request a driver, it shows you their rating and offers you the option not to take a ride from that driver.
of course, if that driver is the only one in the area, then when the app searches for a different one, it might not find one and offer you the same drive.
But most times, there are plenty of drivers.

if their rating drops below a 4 and they don't bring it back up, thay Will be let go, and be banned from using the app, in effect "firing them".


also worth noting, you need a smart phone as Uber and Lyft use an app and that's how you request your rides.

when you request a driver, it brings up a GPS map and shows you where they are and you can track their progress as they come to pick you up.

there are no cash transactions or debit cards or debit card fees involved, I believe you pay through the app itself.


One thing to be aware of is surge pricing. At certain times of increased demand, if there are not enough drivers in a specific area and the demand is high, Uber might acrivate "surge pricing" which can raise the raise 2x, 3x or more.(I think uber can go up to 10x but Lyft maxes out at 3x but don't quote me on that one)
(surge pricing is not common but it sometimes happens on the strip when there are shows and events)
The surge pricing is usually limited to a small zone and sometimes walking a block north or south can get you out of the surge pricing zone and back into normal rates.



as for the Uber driver that killed a bunch of people...stuff like that happens with taxis too.


My roomate and I have never had a bad experience.
Except, one time my roomate got a noob driver that didn't understand how to close out the app and she did get charged another dollar or something...she did leave that guy a low rating and she admits that she should have rejected that ride as the driver popped up with a 3/5 rating but she took the ride anyway.
Sometimes a driver might get confused and not know where to find you.
I believe if 10 minutes go by and the driver is not there yet, you can freely cancel the ride request at no cost to you, but don't quote me on that.

My roommate uses Uber and Lyft almost every day, combined with mass transit to get her wherever she needs to go.


also worth noting, you need a smart phone as Uber and Lyft use an app and that's how you request your rides.


I know I me tioned this earlier, but I will again.
There are actually TWO ride sharing companies.

Uber

and

Lyft

We use both of them but we tend to use Lyft more often than Uber which is just a personal preference.

[Katie Wilson]

Thanks Genevieve. I am rarely in any town without my own vehicle so I am totally unfamiliar with Uber.

Great info for new Uber users though but I will still be taking a cab. Old habits etc'.

Huggers Katie.